Monday, February 19, 2007

Sandesh...A Bengali Sweet

First of all, I would like to thank you all for keep on visiting my blog regularly and checking on me that why am I not updating my blog these days. Actually, now I am taking Wilton's Fondant and Gum Paste class at Michaels, The Art and Craft store and also, we are in the processing of buying a house, which is eating up all our time and most of the weekends. So time is a little short these days :) Another thing I wanted to share with you all is, I couldn't make it to the Chefs.com Treasured Recipe Contest, at the end they selected the finalists themselves after conducting an audit of votes, but I will always be greatful for all your help and support. Thanks a lot once again....

So, the recipe of Sandesh that I am going to share with you today is a quick-fix sweet and no cooking required, accept boiling milk for making fresh Paneer. This is one of the most famous Bengali sweets (all of which are my favourites :D), which is cooked in almost every Bengali family. I learned this recipe from one of my Bengali friends back in India. She used to live near to our home and also have a lot of interest in cooking. She told me that this sweet can be made in two ways, either by cooking the paneer or by not cooking the paneer. We will be making the "NO COOKING REQUIRED" method today. So, lets get started and fill our kitchens with the flavors of Traditional Bengali cooking......

Make fresh paneer from 1/2 gallon of milk and press it with something heavy for 45 minutes, so that all the water come out.

In a large bowl, start mashing it with your hands until smooth and a ball is formed. The heat from your hand will help it in becoming soft and smooth, which is very important since we are not cooking anything.

Now add powdered sugar and cardamom powder. Mix well with hands.

Divide the prepared paneer into 15-18 equal portions.

Roll one of them between the palms of your hands and flatten it.

Put one pistachio in the middle and roll into a ball.

Put each one of them in the muffin cups and garnish with sliced pistachios.

Hey Nidhi, looks white and pristine.My Mom makes this often for my daughter, one more to get that milk into her system. But I personaly like the cooked version better :) maybe because I am not too fond of "chena" or uncooked "paneer"

Hey Nidhi,I kept cheking your blog on and off for the last few days.sandesh looks soo nice.Like Asha said,white and spongy.

Don;t worry that you did not make it to chefs.com contest.For us,you are a superstar now,what with your appearance on no one less than Emeril's show with a quaintessentially Indian recipe!!Hope you are enjoying your classes.

All the very best in your efforts to buy a house.I wish you both sucess and goodluck all through your lives!

this is called coming back with a bang;) missed u girl... love gol matol sandesh and i didn't know its this easy to prepare:) thank u for the recipe. i'm sorry to know u were not selected among top 5. take it as a stepping stone nidhi. i know u won't look back at things and move forward to achieve new horizons:) we all r with u:) so house hunting. must be having a good time rt?;) he he he... take it easy and come back when u free:) cheers

Hi Nidhi, Sorry you couldn't make it to the final list at the contest. But there is always another chance. Sandesh looks lovely. I didnt know it had no cooking involved. thanks for the recipe. I hope you find your new nest soon. It is a great feeling to move into you own home.

nidhi plz reply sooni'm planning to do sandesh for this week party for 20 people.can i do 2 days in advance and shall i store them in air tight container in freezer or in normal rack of fridge.plz reply ma

Thanks Asha, I am glad to know that you liked my Sandesh Recipe so much.

Thanks Trupti, good to know that you were waiting for me and liked my Sondesh. As I wrote in my post as well, that I'll be a little busy because of house hunting, but don't worry, I will keep on posting something or the other whenever I will get a chance. Thanks again... :D

Thanks Hyderabadi, Keep visiting.

Thanks Mishmash, Good to know that you liked the color of my Sandesh, infact that is my favourite color too! And ya, Thanks a lot for waiting and keep visiting.. :D

Thanks Archana, for your kind words and encouraging me so much. I am having lots of fun in my classes, thats what I really wanna do. Lets see for how long can I continue with that...

Thanks Priya, so we have the same liking about Sandesh. Its indeed a tasty and simple sweet, which I make very often. Thanks for you soothing words too!

Thanks Annita, I am so happy to know that you liked my Sandesh so much. And I will soon post some more of my cake pictures. Keep visiting.

Thanks Vcuisine, It makes me very happy, to know that you liked my creations so much. Thanks again for stopping by. Keep visiting for more.

Thanks Jyothsna, I am glad to know that you liked my Sandesh so much. And thanks again for waiting for my post. Keep coming for more recipes.. :D

Thanks Spice Lover, Bengali sweets have everything to love about and I think thats the reason why most of us (Indians) love them, right... Keep visiting!

Thanks Sandeepa for your wonderful comment. You are right, Sandesh is a very good way to make kids eat their milk instead of drinking it :D and they enjoy it as well. Will let you know when we will finalize a house for us....OH! its long process..

Thanks Mythreyee, this recipe is indeed very simple yet full of flovours of Bengal. Try it and let me know if you have any questions.

Thanks Swapna, Good to know that you liked my recipe of Sandesh and ya KOLKATA is the place to look for some great Sandesh. Keep coming for more and thanks for waiting too!

Thanks Suma, I am so happy to know that you liked my Sandesh so much, you can definitely have a bite of it :D . As far as making paneer is concerned, Please click on Fresh Paneer in the Ingredients of Sandesh, and it will take you to my recipe of making paneer.

Thanks Seema, for appreciating my recipe and waiting for my posts. You can definitely Gulp them whenever you feel like ;D

Thanks Sia, for your, as ever, inspiring words and showing so much of faith in me and being there. I will definitely not look back and will keep on moving forward, till I achieve my goals. Thanks a lot for waiting and keep visiting for more!

Thanks Hema, for your comforting words and I am glad to know that you liked my Sandesh. It is indeed a great feeling to have your own home..

Thanks Usha, I am so happy to know that you liked my Sandesh. Keep visiting!

Thanks Jasmine, Keep visiting!

Thanks Kitchenfairy, Please have as much as you like...all yours!

Thanks Sushma, They are very easy to make.....try it if you like to and let me know if you have any questions!

Thanks Just For Fun, I am so happy to know that you are enjoying my recipes. Keep trying and let me know if you have any questions.

Thanks NZ, Welcome to my blog... its a pleasure to have you here and appreciating my recipe for Sandesh. I know your goal but once you achieve it please give my recipe a try! Keep visiting for more...

Thanks Ari, please do try it and I am sure that you will love it. Let me know if you have any questions..

Thanks Jacob, I am really looking forward for a nice and beautiful kitchen in my new home which is a big criteria for me and my hubby! Lets see what we get...

Thanks Coffee, I am happy to know that you liked my Sandesh. try making paneer by White vinegar instead of Lime or lemon and it will become super white! If you want my recipe for making paneer, just click on the link 'Fresh Paneer' in the ingredients of Sandesh.

Thanks Prema, good to know that you liked my Sandesh. Keep coming for more!

Thanks Indo, I am glad you liked them. Try making these at home and you will know that they are really tasty too :D

Thanks Suja, you can definitely make Sandesh 2 days in advance and keep them in the fridge, in an air-tight container. Thanks a lot for visiting my blog and trying my recipes for your guests. Please let me know if you have any other questions and how much did you and your friends liked it...waiting for your reply!

Wow mily white Sandesh, truly delite to eyes and taste buds.I never knew that one can make Sandesh at home. Thanks for sharing this wonderful recipe here.chk out a similar milk sweet - Rasagulla:http://www.indusladies.com/forums/10951-post111.html

nidhi,i'm suja again,thanks for reply.i did sandesh for get together party y'day(saturday),i did with 1 gallon of milk,it yielded 30-32 sandesh all regarded it as too good,they even said taste is similar to the one which we get in good sweet shops.thanks again,u got good name for me.thanks,thanks,,,i did one day before and kept in fridge.i wanted to take photo of my sweet and send but i forgot to take sorry......i even tried ur kadhi some days back,,my hubby who doesn't like curd/buttermilk ,ate kadhi 4-5 servings.as per the recipe i kept for 2 hours not 3-4 hours......thanks.nidhi u replied the below one for me,i have cut paste just to recollect who i'm ....thanks

Thanks Suja, you can definitely make Sandesh 2 days in advance and keep them in the fridge, in an air-tight container. Thanks a lot for visiting my blog and trying my recipes for your guests. Please let me know if you have any other questions and how much did you and your friends liked it...waiting for your reply!

I dint know Sandesh can be even made at home.I tried them yesterday with 1/2 Gallon milk..turned out good.Though I used store bought cardomom powder,I guess because of that my sandesh were not as whoite as your look..powder was very very fine.Next time will grind the whole cardomom and then use..Thanks for the recipe :-)Namrata

Nidhi, that’s a lovely recipe for sandesh! Cooking everything from scratch, using only the freshest ingredients available makes a lot of difference to our well being and health! We all know that a healthy lifestyle with healthy eating can contribute towards much more quality in our living, what with the lifestyle diseases rampant today including obesity and heart problems. For some expert tips on healthy eating habits check out our blog at http://knorratseven.blogspot.com/

Hi! this is Manashi...I tried to make sandesh according to ur recipe...the paneer was fine, I made it smooth by mashing the same continuously with my palm...but when I mixed the powdered sugar into it, it became too runny to form a ball!...So, I cud not make sandesh! I really dont know why such thing did happen!!! can u please help me out????